Sheffield named Director of Track & Field

DENTON, Texas - North Texas Athletics Director Rick Villarreal announced today the hiring of Carl Sheffield as the program's next Director of Track & Field.

DENTON, Texas - North Texas Athletics Director Rick Villarreal announced today the hiring of Carl Sheffield as the program's next Director of Track & Field.

Sheffield spent 12 years coaching as a Mean Green track & field assistant coach from 1996 to 2007 before departing for an opportunity to be the performance coach at the Michael Johnson Training Center in McKinney, Texas.

"In looking for a new head coach, I was looking for someone who had significant coaching experience, great character and with the amount of talent in this state, someone who had Texas roots and connections," said Villarreal. "From watching and working with Coach Sheffield I saw the abilities to lead a high level program. His performance, demeanor and ability to recruit while he was an assistant coach here was instrumental to the success enjoyed by our teams. The experience he has gathered working with Olympic champion Michael Johnson's organization over the last four years has only strengthened the skills he can pass on to our student-athletes. We are proud to have him return as a member of the Mean Green family."

Under Sheffield's guidance as the sprints and hurdles coach at North Texas, his athletes established or tied over 20 school records and earned more than 70 all-conference awards. The Mean Green won four team championships while Sheffield was on staff, two on each of the men's and women's side.

"It's truly an honor to become the next Mean Green head coach," said Sheffield. "It is something that has been part of my coaching aspirations, and for that opportunity to come to North Texas is amazing. I want to thank Rick for this opportunity and look forward to getting thins underway."

He brings enhanced credentials through his work at the Michael Johnson Training Center where he focused on improving the ability of his athletes to integrate linear speed concepts through biomechanics, motor control and performance analysis.

Sheffield began his coaching career as a volunteer assistant at LSU in 1988. The Tigers went on to win a string of 11 consecutive NCAA Indoor and Outdoor Championships. He also coached national-caliber athletes with Nike sponsored teams in Texas and along the Atlantic Coast before his first stint at North Texas.

A native of Dallas, Sheffield was one of the top-five hurdlers in the state while attending Skyline High School and attended UTA on scholarship as a high hurdler.

After earning his B.S. from UTA in 1993, Sheffield earned his Master of Science from North Texas in exercise physiology in 1996. In addition to his coaching duties, he served as an adjunct instructor for North Texas from 2005-07 for the Department of Kinesiology.